Wanna talk about health care? Not really. The thought of a discussion gives me a headache, and I don"t think I could get around to seeing my doctor until next Tuesday.Wanna vilify China? I"ve got be careful on this one. I think a company from China actually owns my mortgage now.Wanna bash illegal...

I got a vacation e-mail reply today from a gentleman in Sweden who said he would be gone "Week 29 to Week 31" and would only be checking e-mail on a weekly basis. I guess I'll just check back with him in Week 32? The whole concept of being away from work for a stretch lasting three to four...

I had a conversation a couple of months ago with a friend who is a manufacturing representative for several metal fabricating companies. The guy is sharp and runs the business as a one-man operation. He's busy and invests in software tools that help him keep track of deliveries and expedite...

Got a note the other day that the FMA's Research Assistance Center acquired a new book that might be of interest. It's The 100 Best Business Books of All Time: What They Say, Why They Matter, and How They Can Help You by Jack Covert and Todd Sattersten. The book provides brief reviews of...

Matrix Metalcraft, Clinton Township, Mich.,has done plenty of prototype and production work for the automotive industry in the past, but with the downturn in the industry, it is targeting industries aligned with alternative power generation for new business. In doing so, it has found out that its laser cutting capabilities will serve those efforts well.

We are planning editorial for 2010 already around the offices of The FABRICATOR. We end up talking about trends, economic prospects, and requests from readers. Some of the ideas will emerge as features next year, and others will remain on the back burner.One trend that we have been following for a...

North American fabricators have not been as active in adoptingautomated bending cells as their counterparts in other parts of theworld. But that may be changing. These five questions can help afabricator decide how to justify the case for a robotic press brake.

I'm always pulling for underdogs. They receive little respect, and their stories are often more fascinating than those darlings standing in the spotlight.That's why I'm pulling for GM. No one thinks it has much of a chance for a recovery, and people are calling the $20 billion...

Doug Bergeson of Bergeson Technology, Dawson, Minn., saw the carnage that improvised explosive devices caused in Iraq, so when he came on, he worked on a solution. He has one now and wants others to know about it.

If I had to choose just one machine tool to watch in a fabricating shop, it would probably be a combination machine. It slices, it bends, it forms, it engraves, it taps. It's the perfect mechanical representation of a job shop: If it needs to be done to metal, we can do it to the metal.Of...

Like many other machine tool builders, Behringer Saws Inc. hosts open house events that invite customers and prospective customers to learn about metal cutting technology. Obviously, in this case, visitors to the Behringer Sawing Symposium and Exhibition, held this week at the company's...

At what point in a tough manufacturing economy does a metal forming and fabricating company pull back its marketing efforts? For most companies, it's one of the first areas to be cut. Others, however, see an opportunity to stand out, while others step back and wait for better times.As one...

I've got to leave work a little earlier than usual today. Actually, this is nothing new. It's been going on for about 12 weeks.I started taking a Spanish class—Occupational Spanish 101 to be exact—at a local community college in the hopes that I could beef up some...

I was talking with a fabricator at the Metals Matters conference in Carefree, Ariz., last week about vacations. I mentioned that one of these days I wanted to pack up the family up in a recreational vehicle (RV) and head to South Dakota to see Mount Rushmore. Based on a similar trip taken by a...

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